Page 33 of Kisses at the Crossroads

She growls.

“Sorry, my only girl.” Her tail wags harder and I can’t help laughing.

My life is so full and it’s all thanks to a naked summoning.

Chapter 18

Lark

“My brother gave this to you for me?” I press the pink envelope to my nose and breathe. Jasmine and roses. “Mother.”

“He said it was for your eyes only. I promised not to peek.” Pike settles in my nest and I sit in his lap with Frankie pressed against his side.

“Surely you can look?”

“I won’t. I take pride in keeping my promises, and this seemed important to Wren. I like him, by the way. But I wish he’d stop eating my snacks,” he adds the last part with a mumble.

“That’s Wren. Always shoving something in his mouth.” I gently remove mother’s wax seal. It’s the same as always, an imprint of her wings.

Pike kisses the side of my head, and I push to my feet to read the note.

Mother’s sprawling handwriting fills the page with swirls and elegance. I haven’t seen the Fae language written by anyone other than myself in a decade, and my eyes fill with tears.

My Dearest Boy,

My heart is full of joy at knowing you’re alive and well. I know one day soon you’ll be home and in our arms again. We never gave up hope that you’d be home again. Your dearest brother tells me a crossroads demon is helping you. The demon can not tell you what will set him free, but I can. Destroy his crossroads. Destroy it and he’ll be bound no longer. Once you’re free of your soul tether, your magic is yours again. Use it wisely and the task will be easy.

Love,

Mother

I blink and the tears fall. Luckily I save my letter from ruin. She gave me what I needed to free Pike. I press the letter to my chest. I’m not worthless. I can give Pike something that will help him.

“Are you okay?” Pike asks at my sniffles.

“I’m perfect.” I lift the letter. “Thank you.” I shove the note under my nest for safekeeping, then crawl back into his lap. His strong arms wrap around me, his tail coils around my calf. “It does make me homesick even more, though. We’re so close.” And my heart aches because I know once I’m home I won’t feel complete unless I can see Pike every day.

“So close.” He kisses the top of my head. “But right now, rest. Rest and dream of gathering flowers and dancing and being free.”

“He told you about that?”

“That you gathered flowers for your mom’s breakfast table every morning? Yes. And I think it’s adorable. I would have loved to see you running around being all cute in your Fae clothes in one of the meadows.”

“Did he tell you about the hats?”

“The hats?” Pike’s brow cocks. “No, he didn’t tell me about the hats.”

“Oh, well, then he didn’t tell you the whole story. I had a collection of hats that I wore only when I gathered flowers because I didn’t want to burn. They were big and floppy and I tied a ribbon under my chin to keep them in place. They also had lots of flowers and ribbons on them. Very flashy.” I wonder if mother kept them all or sent them away to storage. “I also had a collection of baskets, so I wouldn’t crush the flowers in my enthusiasm.”

“Why did the flowers appeal to you so much?”

“It was the meadows. They’re covered in Fae wildflowers and the scent is pure ecstasy. Some of the flowers are musical, so there’s always a faint chime. I could run round for hours and never get bored. Anytime a class got out, I’d fly to the closest meadow and?—”

“Frolic.”

“Exactly. I liked to run around, but mother didn’t like that I got pollen everywhere. She wanted me to sit in the gardens and enjoy myself that way. But they didn’t have the musical wildflowers, and the scents weren’t as strong and deer never came out to play. The gardens were boring.”

“And my poor darling has been stuck here for a decade.” Pike pulls me closer. “I’m taking you out on the town tomorrow. Drake is going to have to deal with it. I won’t take no for an answer.”

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